So, do you dream of the good old days when BSOD was a common friendly visitor?

Do you dream of being repeatedly kicked in the nads? Fuck no, and neither do I

Working with Windows professionally has always been something secondary to my primary career goals, namely working with some sort of UNIX (which, through macOS and Linux, has kinda worked out). Doing frontline desktop support with WfWG 3.11 through Windows 95, Win95OSR2, OSR2.1, Windows 98 and eventually Windows 2000 was just a means to an end, and an experience in and of itself.

oldgeek:

I’m coming to agree that, even though the probability is slim that there will be issues in keeping her Vista machine for an extended time, it would be best to replace it. However, if it would take some time to save up for said replacement, there shouldn’t be too much to worry about. Just be sure to get it done as soon as it is practical.

This was part of my point, perhaps not artfully articulated. When Vista goes EOL, it won’t be a ZOMG COMPUTER NO WORK ANY MORE WHY IT BURNING DOWN MY HOME LOL YOLO situation. Just get it replaced when practical and affordable.

sil:

because I actually do not know if she has £250 to spend on a laptop. I have recommended that that’s what she does because it’s the best thing for someone in her situation, as we’ve discussed above; I’m waiting to hear if she says no because she doesn’t actually have that much spare money, in which case I get to suggest one of the less good but cheaper suggestions instead.

Again, I would avoid a “low cost” laptop with a shit APU on board, as it’ll bite you in the arse down the line.

basr:

Best options without potential dataloss would be imo

Cheap new Windows laptop

Cheap refurbished ex-corporate Windows laptop, with higher specs (better processor, more ram, potentially upgradebale with an SSD) that could run a more demanding OS in the future, for futureproofness. Hoping the older hardware lasts that long.

Help her (or get someone) to install linux on her laptop, whilst migrating her data to the new OS in some way.

This, but for varying values of “cheap”.

The lack of a manufacturer’s warranty may be an issue here, but kit built for the enterprise tends to last longer than lower cost, lower margin consumer gear. Morgan Computers, for example, have some great bits of kit which are, while most likely incompatible with Windows 10, fucking bulletproof. However, I raise again the point that some sort of upgrade may be required down the line to upgrade from the inevitably pre-loaded Windows 7 when it goes EOL in 3 years.

I rarely recommend this option for anyone who is likely to ever want to use a major software package which is usually unavailable for Linux. You also massively reduce the support options from “almost any computer repair store in the country, and beyond” to “that lovely nephew who recommended this computer to me”.

This was part of my point, perhaps not artfully articulated. When Vista goes EOL, it won’t be a ZOMG COMPUTER NO WORK ANY MORE WHY IT BURNING DOWN MY HOME LOL YOLO situation. Just get it replaced when practical and affordable.

Did I hear your head beating against the wall over there? Sorry! If you are patient, I’ll get it. Eventually. Maybe.

Again, I would avoid a “low cost” laptop with a shit APU on board, as it’ll bite you in the arse down the line.

I imagine you would. OK, let’s say someone has £200 budget and that’s all they’ve got. What would you advise then? The ideal option is not available; it’s a question of what the least worst compromise is at that point, which is a much more realistic way to look at the problem.

My last couple of machines have been refurbs. I plonk Linux on them though, which gives me an up-to-date OS with a smaller footprint than the latest Windows. I’m not sure how well you’d get on with Windows 10 on a 2010-era machine.

I recently did a similar project for an aunt. She had a 2008-era Vista machine (Dell cheapie) that was a bit slow and doddery, battery wouldn’t hold charge etc. For a total parts cost of ~£65 I put an SSD, max RAM and Windows 7 on it. Admittedly I had a spare SSD lying around, but small SSDs are amazingly cheap these days so the cost still would’ve been ~£100.

Couldn’t fix the battery - turned out to be a physical problem with the power connector. And went with Windows 7 because, frankly, things like that show the hardware is already nearly past it. If it gets a stay of execution for just a few more years she’ll be happy, considering the local PC store etc were all trying to sell her a new one. She can put the money saved towards a new machine in 2020.

I’d personally be leaning towards either a refurb Windows 7 laptop to upgrade on purchase (they tend to be cheaper that ones with 10 pre-installed) or towards a chromebook purely becase the cheap-tier PCWorld type laptops rarely make it over a couple of years use without having something die or slow to an unusable crawl. Also as @hillsy said, an SSD in a refurb is miles cheaper and more snappy than a new laptop of similar cost.

I’ll start with the obvious bit: have her put her CD backups into the laptop one at a time to make sure they do, in fact, contain her photos.

An acquaintance of mine backed up all of his data to CD in the early 2000s to do a wipe-and-reinstall of Windows. After Windows was restored to its working state he put the CD in, and found that the CD burn had failed. Oops.

Our family experience with Android tablets has been poor. Of all the computing devices we own, they are the most likely to be fumbled and end up with a cracked screen. And the charging ports tend to go bad within two or three years of ownership, and either require expensive repair at a shop or a lot of careful fiddling to replace. We’ve had that happen with four Android tablets from three vendors.

I would recommend a replacement Windows 10 laptop, and if she can’t afford it then maybe install Lubuntu on a 32GB USB flash drive and then mail it to her to try out. It might be a bit of a hassle for her to boot the laptop from the USB drive, but she can try it without doing anything to the original Vista installation.

Wow there are a lot of comments on this thread, assumidly everyone here has been in this situation many times before!

Most often when family members ask me to go over and help fix their computer it’s usually to be sociable and be there to also change light bulbs and re-arrange furnature.

Apple stuff does work, as much as I love Linux I do have to admit if your comfatable being locked in and your not gonna use GTK apple is a viable option.

You could get a cheap second hand mac mini or a MacBook with an external CD drive, with MS word for Mac?

Also would it be possibile to suggest other mediums for photo backup, USB memmory keys or an external hard drive? Often people persist with CD-RW because they are not confident about other options.

Often people ask my advice more because they like to chat about IT stuff to boost their confidence, than because they need a specific answer to a question.

I’m off to my great uncle’s soon as he has a desktop running Win XP, and he has been told by a bloke in PCWorld that they won’t touch it (understandable old Windows OS installs are unstable). I will probably buy a Win 7 or 10 license for him, as he likes PCs, then help my aunt re-arrange the furnature and get some home cooked dinner!

This is actually a complicated question.
Because it’s not just an apple to Apple comparison.
Here are a few pointers.

Windows should really be administered by dedicated professionals. (for many) Because setting a limited account is as difficult as going through mid life crisis for many. Furthermore, it is cruel to leave the elderly to administer PCs in their golden years.

Old windows could still be used, just not online. Think proprietary peripherals.

Chrome and Android are easier to learn and less chance of spectacular catastrophic user error. Remember OTG adapter can add a full size keyboard to any Android devices.

Portable USB powered DVD drive is available on eBay for less than 20£.

Technology changes too fast for what £200 affords. Get something less expensive and then get some other better device in a few years.